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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24968668">Impulse Buy</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/sanctum_c/pseuds/sanctum_c'>sanctum_c</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>FFVII Rare Pair Week 2020 [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Final Fantasy VII (Video Game 1997)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Chance Meetings, Eventual Sex, F/M, Final Fantasy VII Rare Pair Week, First Dates, Flowers, Hook-Up, Implied/Referenced Sex, Midgar (Compilation of FFVII), Money, No Smut, Not Advent Children (Compilation of FFVII) Compliant, Not Before Crisis (Compilation of FFVII) Compliant, Not Compilation of Final Fantasy VII Compliant, Not Crisis Core (Compilation of FFVII) Compliant, Not Dirge of Cerberus (Compilation of FFVII) Compliant, Not Final Fantasy VII Remake Compliant, Originally Posted on Tumblr, POV Reno (Compilation of FFVII), Pre-Canon, Pre-Final Fantasy VII, Pre-Sector 7 Plate Drop (Compilation of FFVII), Rain, Rare Pairings, Reno (Compilation of FFVII)-centric, Tension, Turks (Compilation of FFVII)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-28</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 11:21:12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,122</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24968668</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/sanctum_c/pseuds/sanctum_c</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>Aeris held her cool, but knew exactly what he was, if not who. Eyes more guarded, smile slipping a fraction. Her other hand clutching her staff a bit more tightly- “Fifty gil.” Clipped, pleasant, smiling, but guarded.  Few would interfere with a Turk, now was not the time.</i>
</p><p>
  <i>Reno handed her the note without comment, plucked a flower from the basket and hurried on.</i>
</p><hr/><p>Reno impulsively buys a flower on the way to a date.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Aerith Gainsborough/Reno</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>FFVII Rare Pair Week 2020 [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1800481</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>21</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Impulse Buy</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Written for the prompt 'Chances: first meeting / meetcute, luck, encounters, risk'</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Aeris Gainsborough was not the person Reno expected to see when late to a date. Work troubles resulted in a delay to his plans – as much as he was flippant with authority, it was not easy to drop a particularly involved discussion with suspected dissidents. Nor quick to get the worst of the blood off his hands and shirt. At least he had the opportunity to detour home. He should be running headlong across the plaza – only not running because this was a date and dates had expectations.</p><p>And she was right there. Tseng’s infamously long-term assignment. A sort of not so urgent goal but one the science department were keen to get resolved. She came up a few times in meetings. Tseng was carefully evasive on how over a decade passed since she escaped Hojo’s clutches and her last known address was accurate and in the file. He had some way of keeping the situation from resolving, and if he could keep those plates spinning with their superiors, so be it. Nothing for him to worry about.</p><p>But. This was Aeris Gainsborough. Not some dissident. Not a disgruntled employee. A living, breathing Ancient. Or Cetra if you spent any time in the President’s vicinity on particular days. Duty with high management remained the worst. Him and all his hangers on. Aeris represented something absurdly rare and Tseng was content to not notice she was wandering around.</p><p>Wandering and thriving it seemed; she had taken to the slums without seemingly much issue. Not bad for a kid who thought floor 67 was the world age 7. Sector Five was famously safer, but she remained- How he would expect. Never had much reason to get close to Gainsborough – either of them. She was all smiles and charm, upbeat conversation and possibly a tendency to lean forward more often than was necessary. And- Her skirt was undone pretty high wasn’t it? A blink.</p><p>Getting distracted. Pay her no mind. Only- That basket she had over her arm. Flowers. Old fashioned but a decent talking point to head off his lateness. He changed direction. “How much?”</p><p>She held her cool, but knew exactly what he was, if not who. Eyes more guarded, smile slipping a fraction. Her other hand clutching her staff a bit more tightly- “Fifty gil.” Clipped, pleasant, smiling, but guarded.  Few would interfere with a Turk, now was not the time.</p><p>Reno handed her the note without comment, plucked a flower from the basket and hurried on.</p><p>The flower did the trick with excusing his delay – his date taking it as a potential perk of dating someone higher up in Shinra. But the evening wound up sour. Something about her rubbed him the wrong way now, something in her manner hidden before, or masked by the impulsive (always impulsive) decision to ask her out no longer did it for him. She was game, reacting positively to his distance but- She asked if he wanted to go back to her apartment for coffee, and to both of their surprise he said no.</p><p>He walked away, shivering in the colder night air, pulling his jacket tighter around him. Half-way across the plaza it started raining. Reno cursed and hurried to the nearest overhang. Torrential rain; a regular hazard of Midgar living. Should have paid attention to the weather; as rarely accurate as it was. Some rushed through the rain and under the shelter. “Flower didn’t do you much good, did it?”</p><p>Reno blinked. Aeris Gainsborough was right there, sheltering from the rain. What was she still doing here? Late at night, hair and dress dripping wet and- Flowers. Still flowers in the basket. “It made up for being late, so-“ Reno shrugged. He leant back against the wall, making a point of studying the falling rain and not paying her any mind.</p><p>A sigh beside him and Aeris pulled her jacket off, shaking water droplets from it. That left her shoulders near bare. Did she go around in these temperatures in a summer dress? A summer dress opened almost to her waist and with a low neckline. She caught his gaze and he instead found a suspended sign in the middle distance more interesting. “Any idea how long the rain’ll last?”</p><p>“I also forgot to check.” A glance. She was studying her damp jacket and a tremor ran through her shoulders. Reno hunched his shoulders. Aeris rubbed at her arms. And the impulse was there. Stupid impulse. She was a target no matter whatever notions Tseng operated under. She was an Ancient. A Cetra. The impossible flower girl. She was also wet, the night cold and-</p><p>Reno pulled his jacket from his shoulders and held it out to her. “Here.” Aeris stared at it coolly. “Come on. You’re cold right?” He sighed. “Okay. I know what I am to you, I know who you are. And- And I’m not about to haul you in or anything. We’re stuck here – mostly -  and you’re freezing. And either you put it on, or I drop it on the floor, because I just-“</p><p>Aeris slipped the jacket over her shoulders and wrapped her arms around her waist. “Thank you.”</p><p>He fought back a shiver. “Don’t mention it.” They fell back into uncomfortable silence and the rain continued. He grimaced. “Look, just keep the jacket. I’m going to chance it. See-“</p><p>“How close is your place?”</p><p>Were her eyes always so green? Almost like the pools in the reactors. Like the falling sparks from bad connections. “It’s-“ He gestured. “Two streets that way.”</p><p>She smiled. “But you still stopped here to shelter?” Aeris shook her head. “Really need to work on your lies.”</p><p>“Hey I didn’t come here because of you-“ True, yet it rang hollow given the current situation. “I just-“</p><p>Aeris shuffled closer. “If we share the jacket we could make it to your place without getting too wet.” Woah. She did not meet his gaze, staring out into the rain in the direction he indicated. But a smile still lay on her lips. “Bit far to the station, and not sure I can afford a room-“ She tugged at her dress’s neckline, the damp fabric sticking to her skin. The dress gaped and- Her gaze met his again and she knew damned well what he had seen.</p><p>Stupid plan. Take Tseng’s mark back to his place to get warm; might as well suggest she come back for coffee for all the difference in outcome it would make. Oh so risky. If he wanted to follow his initial helpful impulse to the end he should find the nearest convenience store and buy her an umbrella. Or get them both one. Or- “Sure. Let’s get you warmed up.”</p>
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